Well, its time yet for another issue! As you can tell, we have moved from a
bimonthly publication to a trimonthly publication. This was done so that we
could meet our deadlines better. Also, we have a compression utility for
compressing .WAV files down. So, grab some of these files and hear what the new
bands sound like!

This issue, we're trying to expand things a bit. We now have stuff coming in
from overseas, so it will be a lot easier for us to have stuff to review and
print. Just keep in touch and you'll know what's going on when we do!

Below are listed the bulletin boards that we have the magazine on. Find one
nearest you, and grab it!

If you have Telnet access, which should be easy to get, we are also based on
several of the Freenet BBS's. We have an active account on the Denver, Colorado
freenet, my E-mail address there is ax487@freenet.hsc.colorado.edu. The 'zine
can be mailed to your Internet address, wherever it may be. Be sure and leave
me mail first saying you want a copy of the magazine! More details on how to
activate an account on Freenet boards will also be given later on.

As you can see, this is quite an extensive list, considering also the fact that
we now have an America Online account as well. We'll be updating this list
constantly as we add new support boards.

WOW! It's hard to believe, but by the time this magazine hits, we will have
celebrated our first anniversary! That's right, this little magazine has been
around for a whole year! I haven't REALLY thought about what I'm going to do to
celebrate, but when I do I'll let you all know! One thing I DO know, is this
time last year I received the new Skrew, Cannibal Corpse, and GWAR CD's, and
look what Metal Blade gave us THIS issus to review? The same three bands all
have new releases out this month!

We are now taking out ad space in our magazine for anyone interested. As much
as I hate to charge for ads (they have always been free in the past) it is a
necessity. We are currently charging $30 US dollars for 7 lines of text, and
we will also give you an internet ad for a mere $45 US dollars once we get the
internet address all set up. The Internet ads will be full page; 24 lines of
80 column text.

Special thanks go out to Joe Glessner, the DJ at one of our newest clubs here
in Savannah called Netherworld (he wrote some reviews this issue), to the many
fine labels who support us, namely Paula at Century Media, Tunji at We Bite
Records, all the publicists at CBS/Columbia, Kathy at Geffen Records, Scott and
crew at Energy, Carlos at Roadrunner, Jodi at Elektra Records, Keith and crew
at Relapse/Nuclear Blast, Steve and company at Nasty Little Man/Earache/Seed
Records, Susan at Griffin Records, and all the other labels we work with, such
as Cleopatra, Hollywood, and especially the overseas labels who have taken an
interest in our publication, like Moribund Records, Morbid Records, Hypertonia
World Enterprises, Energy Rekords, and a host of others. Thanks also to Brian
Tawn of the Hawkwind fan club known as The Kadu Flyer, and everyone else in the
scene. Also many thanks to those who indirectly gave me some help; such as
Larry, (the OTHER DJ at Escapades) John Bergin of Trust Obey for the info on
Malhavoc, and anyone else I forgot. Anyway, enough rambling, on to the 'zine!

Remember the review I did of this band waaay back in my first issue? Well, one
year later we have their newest release. Basically, it's the same sick lyrics
that graced the first one, your typical hack/slash and zombie ritual mess that
gets the appraised parental advisory sticker, but this time around, what a
change! Some of the songs actually have KILLER slow riffs and amazing guitar
solos! I was especially impressed by the tracks "Return to Flesh, "The
Bleeding," and "An Experiment in Homicide." Whether you like their lyrical
content or not, their skills as musicians has definitely a great deal of merit.
They prove that they aren't only capable of blazing speed riffs with no thought
to melody or harmony (some of their last efforts were just out and out chaos,
but that doesn't do anymore for the "new wave of death metal!") but they
actually create a slow, crushing style of heaviness that is far superior to
their last album. Even Chris' vocals have taken on some surprising new twists.
Although I care not for their lyrics, a few songs this time around are not too
bad, but basically I'd have to say a drastic improvement over their last
effort!

A technohead. That pretty much sums up what I've turned into these past couple
of months, especially considering the fact that we have at least four clubs in
the Savannah area that cater to techno and rave. This disc has some very hard
beats and some fast, dancey tracks. Eleven tracks on this release, all very
enjoyable except for that religious chorus type chant found on the track
"Church of Extacy." The electro noises are blended well with the rhythmic,
heavy beats, and makes for intense, furious dancing! Other cool tracks on here
are "Passion," "Modulator," and "Babbahouse 2." Highly recommended for the
club, they also have three singles available, "Church of Extacy," "Devil
Beats," and "Modulator."

A rather interesting mix of electronic techno and industrial, with hip-hop
style beats and intonations, this 4 song CD is very good! Utilizing various
sound samples (such as a guy brushing his teeth and the usual social/political
babblings of various unknown speakers) and hard hitting electronic noises and
beats, this is also good to play in clubs, though a few tracks will have to be
edited down because of the uncharacteristic time and beat changes in midstream.
Otherwise, very danceable, ranging from slow to fast and usually somewhere in
between. This 4 song CD, by the way, features 3 songs which have been
"radically remixed" from their "Tunes From a High Wire" album, and one brand
new track (named "Ten Seconds To Crazy.") I highly recommend this disc, but if
you want something to dance straight through, make sure you edit out the parts
you don't need!

Described as "atmospheric metal music" by this Swiss label, this should appeal
to all those who love doom metal, and even some that don't care much for metal
at all! This wonderful disc features a grand piano, beautiful female vocals
that are utilized on nearly all of the songs, very richly layered keyboards and
haunting male vocals! What more can I say? Over 70 minutes of outstanding and
well crafted atmospheric and beautifully played metal, the highlights of this
disc are too many to list individually. The only problem is not a major one,
but sometimes the male vocalist tends to blend in too well with the rest of the
music, making his words hard to understand at times. However, that is a very,
VERY minor fault, so don't let it bother you! The best tracks on here are
"Astral Mirage of Paradise," there is a nice piano solo on the song "Beryllos,"
and of course my personal favorite, besides any track containing the female
singer, "Monolithos." One of my favorite releases in this genre, I highly
recommend it! See the contact ads and addresses section on how to obtain this
disc!

Okay, take the lyrical content of Candlemass, throw in a vocalist of Entombed
style singing and add doomy guitars mixed with Entombed style riffing.
Basically, this is what Divine Eve sounds like, with a lot of emphasis on speed
and death. "As the Angels Weep" has a nice intro and really mournful guitars
to them, the drums are quite intense and powerful. 4 songs grace this cassette,
and lyric sheet is included. The vocalist, as I stated earlier, sound a bit
like Entombed, but he does manage to keep everything under control. A nice
mix of slow grinding doom and heavy as hell death metal. The other three songs
presented here are "The Last of the Sunset Faded," "A Somber Blossoming," and
"Harlequin of Perpetual Destiny."

The face of death metal as we know it has changed. WHY!? It seems people are
more interested in melody and beauty in the vein of Tiamat and Cemetary than
the all-out crazed death assault displayed with the finesse and skill of such
raging gods as Morgoth, Asphyx, Death and Napalm Death. (Or bands to that
effect.) Now, don't get me wrong, melody and atmosphere are cool, but I still
love that raging death sound. Well, this five piece (actually a 4 piece, one
member Anders Lindberg did not play on this recording due to military service!)
can rage with the best of them! The guitars, for instance, retain an eerie
melody but still pack plenty of death-crunching riffs without sounding too
serene like Tiamat or newer Cemetary material. The vocalist is very versatile,
I even enjoyed his style of singing on a classic Manowar track "Blood of my
Enemies." The lyrics deal with serious subjects, for instance "Living Hell"
deals with the bands' disgust over child molestation, and the imagery is not
always your typical death metal topics. One fault I find with them is on their
speed riffs, sometimes they pack too much into too few lines, some of the fast
leads and breaks sound rather sloppy, but basically they have a good mix of
power and aggression. This being their third album, it shows lots of growth and
I look forward to seeing more from this band soon.

I can't figure this one out. On "Comin' Down," they utilize a rough, hardcore
style sound. On "Down the Hall," it sounds like Guns 'n' Roses. On "#20," it's
a very rough, screaming punk tune. The majority of the songs are alternative
straightforward style. I didn't care much for the singing style on the track
"High & Low," but Andrew Crowley's vocals aren't that bad on the whole. The
musicians prove that they can play the different styles of music. There was
even a nice little slow song in "Winter Storm." Basically, it's just a four
piece band playing different styles within the alternative genre. Nothing
really outstanding, save the few cuts mentioned. However, some of those cuts do
have a commercial appeal, and I even enjoyed "Winter Storm" and "Comin' Down."

Usually, I judge certain albums by their repeatability. In other words, once
I've played through it once, would I really want to listen to it again? In the
case of this Oakland, California band, I think I can understand why no American
label has picked them up! But seriously, the playing style is really slow,
grinding alternative/doom rock, with a rather low pitched vocalist to boot.
Ten tracks grace this CD, and while I find some of the riffs very heavy and
catchy, they tend to get repetitive at times. Interesting enough, I thought I
recognized a riff straight from Death's "Scream Bloody Gore" album, but I'm
sure that was an accident. One of the "songs," "Friday's God," is rather dull
and too long, it features some girl ranting on and on about nothing really,
I hope they don't do this live. The other non-song, "Hall of Shades," features
your favorite foursome sitting around snorting some cocaine. Kinda funny, but
not really in the spirit of the album. Most of this sounds like it was dragged
on for awhile, but as I said, some of the riffs and the slower moving pieces
are really heavy, and the vocalist I can sometimes get into. The cooler tracks
are "Vanishing Point," "The New Messiah," (which has a neat little "Mr.
Tinkertrain" style intro on it) and "Mister Claymore." Maybe it will appeal to
fans of doom metal, maybe those who like a slow grunge style of playing.

WOW! I tell you, this Swiss record label is definitely one to watch out for!
Even the CD's I haven't received from them yet sound very interesting! Anyway,
this particular little gem is dubbed as "political apocalyptic industrial,"
though what they fail to tell you is that the style is more death metal than
industrial. The vocalist sounds like a cross between Glenn of Deicide and Mark
of Morgoth, and lemme tell ya, those are two of my favorite death bands! Some
of the riffs are rather slow and grinding, but when they break out the speed,
it is very brutal! Many samples grace this disc, everything from haunting
church organs and female operetta style chorus lines to air raid sirens and
bomb explosions (featured on the track "War," a perfect soundtrack for the
apocalypse if ever there was one!) and everything else in between! Though there
are some very dark, crushing riffs, and very brutal vocals, there are some
very melodic moments on this disc, especially the soft whispers on "Ethnic
Cleansing" and of course the female vocals, which seems to be a trademark with
Witchhunt bands. I can hear some very influential and very different ideas
with this industrial/death crossover, and it still impresses me every time I
listen to it! Though it will probably appeal more to death fans than those who
enjoy industrial, you're going to have to admit it is very original! And check
out those fast double bass style beats on "Drowning in Sorrow," is that an
actual drummer or a machine?!?!

Leaether Strip's Claus Larsen's new album "Underneath the Laughter" can only be
described as richly layered keyboards and a thundering electro-body beat. As
with his token snarling vocals he invokes new imagery somewhat reminiscent of a
baptist church in a hellish landscape. All the tracks are quite danceable,
especially "Turn to Stone" and "Praying Eyes," though with the song "We Will
Follow" a slow, nightmarish dreamscape is conjured up with beautifully dark
pianos and strings accompanied by female vocals. This is by far the best album
Leaether Strip has ever produced and Claus Larsen's skills at orchestration and
arrangement have proved him to be a talented musician and powerful force in the
realm of electro-body music. (Editor's note: While I find the CD quite a change
from their last effort, I find that this hits with industrial as well as the
aforementioned styles.)

Man, oh man did I ever dig this demo! A brutal and torturous vocalist we have
here on this three song demo. The playing sometimes gets to be really fast
death metal, and in lots of places they actually slow it down and create a VERY
heavy atmosphere of riffing, and I could have sworn I heard keyboards in there!
One thing that annoys me, though, is the singer's hardcore singing style, it
gets annoying at times, but otherwise our throat man is very competent! I must
admit I played this thing two or three times before I reviewed it! The drummer
is very fast on some leads, I don't see how he was able to keep up that pace
through three songs! Let's not forget the bass, which especially on the second
song sounds more like a bludgeoning instrument rather than a guitar! The three
songs are "A Killer's Prayer," "Naked Soul," and "Dark Asylum." Very brutal,
very well done, heavy as hell and recommended by all means! Don't let the
singer's hardcore singing style throw you, though, it's only a minor annoyance.

You know, at first glance this CD seems to only have 6 songs. But, it is some
of the most intelligently arranged trance/techno I have ever heard! Utilizing
the dreamy sequence of trance mixed with some heavy synth beats made perfect
for dancing! The track I enjoyed most on this CD was "Lush 3/Walk About," which
was released under the series of recordings known as the John Peel sessions.
(This same man also released albums with bands like Napalm Death and Joy
Division.) Anyway, there are some interesting twists here, none the least of
which is the strange and beautiful way they used flutes in the song "Semi
Detached." All in all, it's great, you can dance to it, hell, you can even
relax to it! I look forward to hearing more from these guys, and of course I'm
going to try to track down their other releases!

One of the first full length overseas discs I have received, this is a 42 song
(Yes, I said it right!) CD! It features 21 brand new songs recorded with their
current lineup, along with their two older 7" EP's ("Almighty God," and
"Drowned in Restrictions.") Playing extreme grindcore in the style of early
Napalm Death and the like, some of the songs sound the same. Although this may
sound like a bargain, 42 songs on one CD, the total playing time is no more
than 45 minutes. The lead singer, by the way, sounds like he has a gag in his
mouth and is screaming for help! Very funny sort of sound, but the background
chorus is quite aggressive. This isn't a bad release; the sludgy sound actually
works, and some of the slower played riffs are very heavy and catchy, but some
of these songs do tend to sound the same. Others, however, are quite brutal and
make for interesting listening. Not a bad release, but it's far from a top
notch disc.

Well, as I review this little gem of a disc, I am instantly brought back to
exactly one year ago, when I first started this publication of mine.
Fortunately for me, Skrew retains that guitar driven heaviness of their first
Metal Blade release "Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame." The difference this
time around is that Adam Grossman relies less on the electronics to distort his
vocals, choosing instead to sing in a more natural style voice. The effect is
rather likened to a harsher hardcore singing style. The guitar riffs are very
heavy, though in some songs they use the same riffs repeatedly. This, however,
does not detract much from the overall feel of the album. On some of the tracks
where the axemasters provide us with slow riffs, they are apocalyptically
heavy! The lyrics are well written as well, and such tracks as "Picasso
Trigger," "Season For Whither," and "Albatross" show that Skrew have definitely
matured both in their instrumentation and in their song writing abilities. A
very good release, one I had been looking forward to for a whole year!

I was pretty impressed by this one. 7 tracks (although the CD lists 6, the
seventh track sounds like a prelude to another album to be recorded in the
future) and this industrial/electro band runs the gamut of moods, everything
from melancholy to anger and everything in between. The vocals are just
slightly distorted with electronics, and that singer has the coolest voice!
The only detractions I have are with the last two "songs," one being
"Commination," which contains a very boring repetitive electronic riff and
nothing else, save the guitars, and "Kenneth, What's the Frequency," which is
okay but it sounds a bit ancient compared to their other tracks. Anyway, "Con,"
"Antibody," "Forceps," and "Breath and Taxes" are all very good tracks in their
own right.

As many of you know, this is one of my favorite hard rock bands. This time
around they have a GREAT sound live. This disc features them doing cuts from
their last album 'Genesis' such as "Mysterious," "Comin' Home," "All or
Nothing," and "All I Want." The number five refers to the five songs that are
either new songs or songs presented on some other album. The new songs are
very well written, I most enjoyed "Standin' On Fire," a very heavy intro is
featured before they slow things down with some melodic singing. I also really
dig the track "Just Between Us," a rather powerful slow tune, one that is
presented live with deep feeling and passion. My only complaint is with the
singer's addressing the crowd on one of the songs, he sounded a bit brash about
audience participation. There is also a killer solo right before the song
"Comin' Home," something you won't find on the Genesis CD. Yet another killer
release, as it's only hard rock/heavy metal it will only appeal to a select
few, but those select few will indeed not be disappointed!

This compilation features some of the wierdest, darkest, and demented
industrial I have ever heard. There is even a techno track on here that I
realy like "Tjanne ru teknolukten?" by En Halvkokt I Folie. The majority of the
tracks are very experimental excursions into noise and industrial/techno, and
there are also some surprising twists such as the death metal/industrial
crossover done by Brighter Death Now, and even some dark rantings of
hypocrisy by Archon Satani. A few tracks, however, sound like out and out noise
with no thought to any structured arrangement. It took some getting used to,
but most of the tracks are very bizarre and very original. The last track by
Morthond I believe it was stood out from the rest as a bit more mellow, but
all in all if you like your industrial dark, moody, and a bit on the morbid
side, this may be just the treat for you! I definitely look forward to hearing
more from this label!

WARNING! Playing this CD just might blow some speakers, especially if you take
into consideration the extreme bass presented in the song "Sentinal." But
anyway, this CD proclaims 16 tracks by five artists, and all the material is
very fast hardcore techno! The stuff may be hard to dance to, but nearly all
the tracks are very good. The five artists featured here are Human Resource,
The Bazeman, DJ Raveric, Reyes, and Simon C. My one complaint is with the
selection of songs from Human Resource, they only have four songs, but two
of them are remixes, so actually only two songs are presented. However,
"Sound of Rotterdam" is easily the best track on this CD. Coming in a close
second is "Sentinal" by Simon C. Easily the strangest tunes come from the
mind of DJ Raveric, check out the strange rantings of "Hey Gringo." After
listening to this CD, you may not ever learn what house is, but this is most
definitely hardcore techno! And for you metalheads, Reyes even samples some
Twisted Sister for ya on the track "I Wanna Rock!"

Well, as I mentioned last issue, this band has advertised their CD on the
Internet, a place that I currently call home. Anyway, the CD is mostly very
atmospheric and soft techno, with vocals! The majority of the tracks are not
made as much for dancing as they are for just kicking back and relaxing, but
you might be able to dance to "Consciousness (In the Well)" Mainly slow tracks
with an occasional light techno beat, the songs are very well done, with a
heavy emphasis on instrumentation and atmosphere rather than a frenetic,
furious beat and a danceable scene. The vocals, when they are present (you'll
find their best examples in "In the Scene of the Mind" and "The World Inside")
are sort of background and seem to set off the mood quite nicely. If you're
looking for a heavy dance product, skip over this; however, this would be a
perfect CD to set a laser light show to!

Welp, here it is! The debut CD from the members of Running Wild, now together
with Frank Knight on vocals to form X-Wild! You may remember the interview we
did with them last issue or so, and lemme tell ya! From the opening notes, it
sounds most definitely like Running Wild! Frank Knight gives a rather competent
performance here, but some songs sound like they needed more work. There is a
rather weak chorus line on "Mystica Deamonica," and the opening song "Can't
Tame the Wild" sounds a little ragged. However, most songs rage through here
with kickass metal fury and intensity, in some songs it sounds like a VERY
strong cross between AC/DC and Running Wild! "Dealing With the Devil,"
"Scarred to the Bone," and "Kid Racer" are good strong songs, showing that they
remain true to the spirit of TRUE heavy metal. The song "Thousand Guns" is
probably the strongest cut here in my mind, reminding me of the way AC/DC
composed most of their songs. At times, this band reminds me of the fury and
mainstream power displayed by longtime Attic Records band Railway. The
drumming is very consistent, and the band as a whole sounds very good. As I
stated earlier, remove Frank Knight and insert Rock 'n' Rolf and it would sound
EXACTLY like Running Wild. However, with a little work and some performance
time under their belts, this band will go far. This is still a rockin' disc!

An all female trio of raging death metal! Just goes to show that these ladies
can kill with the best of 'em! From the first listen, I had a hard time
believing that the singer was female, as Dana Duffey is able to go WAAAY down!
Unfortunately, I can't say that I was really all that impressed with this 4
song EP, as the playing style, a bit one dimensional with only one guitar and a
bass, is just slow grinding death with fast breaks every now and then. The
vocalist it seems sounds like she's trying to make herself unable to be
understood. The best cut on here is "Spawn of Absu," where they vary the tempo
a bit between fast riffing and slow grinding death, however it seems to me like
they need to work a bit more on the musicianship and tighten things up a bit.
The band shows a bit of a promise, hell, how many death bands have you seen
with an all female cast (and very pretty ones too, I might add! Don't take that
the wrong way, now, okay?) Maybe if they work a little bit more on their
playing and songwriting they could be a force to be reckoned with and I'd love
to see it happen! This EP, incidentally, was pressed on Blue marble colored
vinyl. The 4 songs here are: "Intro," "Spawn of Absu," "Winter Solstice," and
"Lament Configuration."

I've been finding that lately it's the smaller and independent labels that are
doing the most revolutionary things with bands. As in the case of Pax Mortis,
definitely NOT your average death/thrash combo, these guys utilize classical
and jazz influences into their three song EP printed on blood red vinyl. The
singing is your typical death metal style, but what REALLY sets these guys
apart is their lyrics, besides only having one song with vocals ("My Belief.")
This song deals with animal cruelty and is very well written. The other two
songs, "A World of Thieves" and "Visions From the Past," showcase some very
strong talent, and when they throw the classical and jazz riffs in there, it
is done very subtly; it doesn't detract from the hard, aggressive style that is
the main theme throughout their works. Mostly brutal, with touches of sheer
beauty and very skilled musicianship, this 3 song EP is a must have. Very
original, and unlike Tiamat's efforts of atmospheric death in that they still
retain a brutality that is unmatched in most bands' attempts to mix death and
atmosphere.

Regress Records is a label that is run by the same guy who runs Baphomet
magazine. Anyway, this two-song EP is mostly instrumental. They credit a
vocalist, who really does no more than speak a few lines in both songs. The two
songs, "The Divine Path" and "Wings of Trinity," showcase very fine talent, the
drumming is tight and solid, and the riffing of both lead and solo guitars are
quite good, however, for solid metal playing this is about as far as it goes.
I get the feeling that this was some sort of experimentation project, because
there is, as I said, an actual vocalist in this band. Hard to judge this one,
but if you're into metal instrumental music, this one will work for
you. The song "The Divine Path," by the way, has a short but sweet intro using
your classic rainstorm sound effects with someone speaking in the background.

WOW! Man oh man did I ever enjoy this one! Two songs here, which are taken from
their forthcoming release "Stress" are very short, punkish attitude mixed with
hardcore style playing in the vein of Biohazard meets Henry Rollins with a bit
of good humor to boot. The EP, incidentally, was produced by Evan Seinfeld of
none other than Biohazard! The two songs, "No Woods" and "Alcohol," show a very
diverse style, "No Woods" is kinda slow, funky, Biohazardish hardcore, while
"Alcohol" reminds me of a Murphy's Law style punk/hardcore mix, and you can
tell that these guys are having fun with this one, especially in their lyrics!
The singer has that Rollins/Biohazard style of voice, it's rather a neat little
package, and I can't wait to get the full length release from this crazy, fun
band!

INTERVIEWS:

DROWN. Interview with Joe from the Elektra offices.

Drown, in the words of the guitarist/keyboardist Joe Bishara, "is very
different from the Drown of about six years ago. The vision for our sound and
direction was not as clearly defined, but thanks to Alan Rider, our publisher,
we were able to secure a deal with Elektra Records to release our first album
'Hold on To The Hollow.' Alan basically sent out a demo to the Elektra offices,
they came down and saw a show, had us do another demo, and we are signed for
7 albums. We are going to be working on a new album and do some touring plans
this year." Club potential too has been reached with this album, which also has
seen a single release for the song "What it is to Burn." Speaking of remixes
and singles, Joe adds; "I've been working with Dave Ogilvie (formerly of Skinny
Puppy fame) and we have done some remixes, mainly for the 'What it is to Burn,'
we did a couple of Nine Inch Nails remixes in Vancouver with Anthony Valcheck.
There are probably about three remixes finished for every song on our new album
which may be released at some point."

All the lyrics, incidentally, were written by Lauren Boquette, who is also the
vocalist for the group. One of the more interesting songs, "Longing," was,
according to Joe, "really not planned at all. I was in a strange mood one night
and just sat around with the keyboards and came up with this track. The music
was pretty much finished at that point, and I gave the tape to Lauren to see
what he'd thought of it, then later on he gave it back to me with vocals on it
and I was just blown away." For those not in the know, "Longing" is the slowest
and probably one of the most unusual pieces on the whole album. It sounds like
it might be a typical ballad, but is filled with angry and at the same time
some sad lyrics and the same brutal vocal style exemplified throughout the
album. "As far as our lyrics go, you'd have to talk to Lauren about the actual
mood for our songs," Joe informs us further, "but as far as the musical portion
goes, when I'm sitting down to write music or to start programming, I try to
strike a certain vibe. Whatever mood I might be in that day I try to take that
and put it to music and intensify that by about one hundred percent."
So, what is the whole mood of the album? According to Joe, the band's goal
seems to be "Intensity. That is a very important quality to have, not
necessarily for music, but also with everything else as well. We are the same
way live that we are on the album."

And what about the industrial scene, with bands like Nine Inch Nails and
Skinny Puppy getting popularity? "I've been listening to this stuff for years,
and I'm really burned out on it by now. I don't listen to much rock music much
anymore, I have been getting back to stuff like Tangerine Dream, somewhat New
Age and ambient keyboard music that I grew up with in the 70's. The state of
music right now seems like there isn't much really there. A lot of stuff is
sounding like it's being rehashed. I believe that ambient stuff is coming back
and I think the techno/ambient movement is such a brilliant combination. I love
techno, bands like Aphex Twins and Orb, and Sven Vath. Sven's new album
'Accident in Paradise' on Sire records is very brilliant ambient/techno."

So what sort of equipment does Joe use when doing his samples and recording?
Of course he's gonna tell us: "I have a Macintosh based MIDI studio at home.
The brains behind it is a Quadra 800, and all that connects to a Kurtswheel
K-2000, one of the coolest modules to come out in years. I also use a Waldorf
Microwave, an EMI systems procussion unit for some drum and percussion sounds,
an E-max II sampler and an Oberheim Matrix 1000, which has some really great
old fat analog pads in it. That whole thing also goes with a 4 channel Protool
system for editing purposes." Serious equipment!

Although they don't have any specific material ready for a new album besides
the remixes mentioned above, get their debut album if you can, and stay tuned
for their road dates!

MY DYING BRIDE. Interview with Andrew.

My Dying Bride currently has a new album out, entitled "Turn Loose the Swans."
For those of you already familiar with the style of doom/death metal played by
them, you may be surprised at their change in singing style. Andy comments:
"We decided that from the first album, we started out as a typical death metal
band, but we realized that with the new album we were playing better, and on
the more mellow parts the vocals as standard death style vocals didn't really
fit to the kind of melodies we were putting down. So we decided that Aaron
could try singing and it seems to work out a lot better." I couldn't agree
more, as Aaron has a definite sound that seems to shape and define the band as
a force to be reckoned with in the doom/death metal world. But, as we stated
earlier, the band wasn't always this way, given by Andrew's description of
their history: "We formed in June 1990 by myself and Rick, Calvin and Aaron.
Calvin and Aaron were in another band which wasn't doing anything at that time,
they were unhappy with what was happening with their band, and Richie and I
were also in another band; the two bands split up, and we all got together to
form the outfit My Dying Bride. We released our first demo as a four piece
(we didn't have a bass or violin player) called "Towards the Sinister." We had
an offer from a popular fanzine called Peardrop (which is pretty popular in
Europe.) who also helped us release a 7 inch. We then recruited a bass player
and then Peaceville got interested in us and we signed to them. As we were
getting ready to record our first EP for Peaceville, a violin and keyboard
player offered to play bass for us, but we already had Adrian, so then he told
us he could play violin and keyboard so we tried him out and it made our sound
more interesting."

Well, we've touched upon what drives their sound, their instruments and the
band members, but what about the lyrics? Well, with song titles like
"Your River," "The Songless Bird," and "The Snow in my Hand," it's a safe bet
that your typical death metal rehash will not be found here! Of course, Andrew
is here to tell all about the lyrics behind My Dying Bride: "Aaron writes the
lyrics, but the main influences come from old classical literature, such as
stuff in Shakespeare, and also the bible; although he is not a real religious
person, the stories in the bible are fantastic to him, he likes the wording
and the way words were written in old literature. Mainly stories and epics that
are mysterious and well written." As for the song "Black God," which had no
lyrics written in the lyric sheet, he goes on to explain: "That was a poem,
but it wasn't our lyrics so we couldn't use it, couldn't write it down. We
found this old poem that we like, but we couldn't find the guy who wrote it.
Since we couldn't credit ourselves as the original writers of the song, we left
the lyrics off the sheet. Incidentally, this is the only song that we can't
play live." This song also features a female vocalist, which Andrew told me
was performed just for the album.

My Dying Bride also has an EP out in Europe, which should be released over
in the US later this year. Andrew tells us what is on that EP: "It's called
'I am the Bloody Earth' and has 'I am the Bloody Earth,' a remixed version of
the song 'Crown of Sympathy' which I prefer better than the original, and
'Transcending Into the Exquisite' which is sort of an industrial/techno type of
track which came from an idea from Steve Dixon who is in a band called Drug
Free America. He basically took the master tapes from our LP into the studio
and chopped them all up and wrote a completely new song in the style of Pitch
Shifter. We like to experiment on our EP's." Currently, they haven't worked on
any material for a new album yet, but as I said before, the EP should be out
later this year! They have also gotten rave reviews in Rolling Stone magazine,
as well as other periodicals, so stay tuned for more from the English coast!

SEPULTURA. Interview done with Max Cavalera at the Roadrunner offices.

Festivals in Europe. Three shows in Germany with Rollins Band as supporters.
A current tour with Pantera, which lasts a whole month. Guest appearance on
their newest release "Chaos A.D." by Jello Biafra. Not a bad year for a band
from Brazil who almost went unnoticed if it weren't for the signing by
Roadrunner. Then Epic Records steps in and picks up the rights to their newest
release. According to Max, however, the song "Biotech is Godzilla" came about
because, "Jello Biafra is one of my favorite writers. I always loved Dead
Kennedys' lyrics. Jello has a really cool way of talking about politics and
topics of that nature. Igor and Andreas played with Biafra in Brazil, they did
about two shows, and kinda put a band together, playing Dead Kennedys and Lard
songs. Jello ended up coming to one of our shows on the Ministry tour, and
said he was really into the band, and we also got involved in a Dead Kennedys
compilation album called Alternative Tentacles Virus 100. We did the song 'Drug
Me.' for the compilation album, which was basically a bunch of bands doing Dead
Kennedy covers. (This song later showed up on an import Sepultura album, also
featured here was a track called 'Orgasmatron,' which was originally done by
Motorhead.) 'Drug Me' was done in Brazil, and we donated the whole thing to
hospitals of children in Brazil." Speaking of Brazil, the current situation is
"unchanged. The mentality of most people down there is very closed minded.
Nobody is organized, nobody wants to go through any major changes, and I feel
sorry for the people down there who are struggling to make it. I see how things
are here in America, and in Europe, and things just aren't working down in
Brazil. Lots of political unrest, and it seems like Brazil is comparable to
Russia in their situation. It was very hard for us to get out, and I don't say
that so people will feel sorry for us. (He answered mainly because I asked!
-Ed.) Musically, there is a huge amount of support here in the US, and you can
probably buy your favorite bands on CD in many record stores. When we started
out in Brazil we couldn't get many albums, it was really hard to get
instruments to play and they were really crappy." Speaking of their first
album "Bestial Devastations EP," Max informs us about Cogumelo, their first
label based in Brazil, "they are still around. They do everything from death
metal to hardcore, to rock and roll. They started just with power and death
metal bands, but they felt they needed to crossover to more people so they
did other styles. I wouldn't be surprised if they did a rap band! Right now
they have Overdose, Dorsal Atlantica, and a bunch of hardcore bands. At least
they give a chance to their people to come out with some good music."

Chaos AD, as far as sales, "is doing real well, but we aren't concerned with
sales and stuff. If our albums weren't selling we really wouldn't care, as
well, we prove that we could put out another album and be different from the
last one. We could have easily put out 'Arise part II,' because 'Arise' sold
a million copies worldwide, but what's the point of doing that again? Lots of
bands, they see green first. I have other beliefs before that." Well, what
about their older stuff from their first albums? "We do 'Troops of Doom,' and
'Antichrist' live. We don't get many requests for the older stuff, but there
are a really small group of people that get into that. I like it, I don't deny
any part of our history, but those old songs are kinda like old tattoos, you
don't remove them, you leave them there, because you're always gonna remember
a time of your life when you went through certain things. On the tour with
Pantera, our third song is 'Troops of Doom,' and we play 'Escape to the Void,'
which was on our Schizophrenia album. We'll sometimes play 'Crucifixion' or
'Antichrist.'"

As this interview goes on further, I note that even though Max Cavalera was
born a native of Brazil, he speaks English very well. Max lets me know that
"I always wanted to learn English all the way from when I was still in school.
I always wanted to know what my favorite bands were saying, I was interested,
and not just one of those people who just likes the music. I started writing
the albums and translating it with a dictionary, it took me about a week to
translate each album! What's really tough is, we went to Jamaica recently,
and they mix English with French, and talk really fast. It's kinda like Pig
Latin in a way, sometimes we can tell the native Jamaicans are talking in ways
that the natives don't understand." On writing songs, Max tells us that "Me and
Andreas are the only ones that write lyrics really. I ended up writing a little
more the last album than Andreas. We try to keep the lyrics to half and half."
Sepultura's current tour is probably overseas by the time you read this, but
they will be coming back to the States to finish up the tour with Pantera.
No word on new song titles yet, though Max does have some stuff written. Grab
Chaos A.D. If you can, and from Max, "Thanks for all the support and for
buying our albums!"

TYPE O NEGATIVE. Interview with Peter Steele.

Type O Negative is a band that these days is doing pretty well. Though we were
disappointed that they canceled a date at a local club, the tour with Nine Inch
Nails was, as Peter puts it, "went very well. We played to sold out theatres,
and the crowd was pretty responsive to our stuff. Nine Inch Nails treated us
great, we really can't complain." Along with successful tours, their latest
release Bloody Kisses is a radical departure from their two previous efforts,
"Origin of the Feces" EP and "Slow, Deep and Hard." The feelings and overall
mood of the album differ greatly from the first to the last, as Peter explains,
"The first album was written much out of anger and hostility and this album
(Bloody Kisses) was written more out of depression and sadness. Over the years
we have grown and gotten older, and our styles and musical topics have changed.
We basically tried to create atmosphere, although we have gothic influences in
this newest album, we don't try to label our albums as one specific style. We
aren't concerned with labels and categories people try to put on us." And
believe it or not, people have caused Type O negative a LOT of trouble,
especially overseas. "The song 'We Hate Everyone' is about all the crap that
happened to us over in Europe, we were accused of being Nazis, which is kind of
funny because I'm Jewish. It is basically an uninformed public that doesn't
really understand English, and didn't even take the time to find out what we
were all about. We were even having problems over here as well, we started the
show with Motley Crue and in Texas we were told that we were not allowed on a
base out in Texas, which was our first show. We almost canceled the whole thing
because of that. It pisses me off because the same people that are screaming
about censorship and the first amendment are becoming our biggest censors.
This tour with Motley Crue lasts 12 weeks, and hopefully we won't have any more
problems."

Peter has certain views on religion, and those views sometimes are presented
in his songs: "Basically, with Christianity, I was raised with it, there's a
lot of churches that say that everything that is human is wrong. It's almost
impossible to be raised strictly christian and not feel horribly guilty about
having all the normal feelings that people have. If our sexual explorations are
a sin, then everyone is going to hell, basically. We just basically try to tell
the truth and people get offended regardless. We did a song called 'Kill All
The White People,' which was our little joke on racism (us being white and
all) just to see what people would say, and they seemed to take it seriously.
It seems that government likes to step in as well, with their crap about
freedom of speech. Basically you have freedom of speech as long as you say what
THEY want."

I was curious to know how they work their songs in concert, as they will
basically be playing for different audiences. What I mean is, there are diehard
Type O Negative fans that like the older material, and some new fans that are
into the newer stuff. A further revelation reveals: "We usually do about half
and half of new and old stuff. On the tour with Motley Crue we try to lean
towards the newer stuff, we usually only get 35 minutes to do our stuff, and
our songs are pretty long. Most of our songs are about 10 to 12 minutes each,
so we can usually only do like a few songs each. We have a lot of smoke effects
in our shows, lots of atmosphere with smoke effects and stuff." Though you
won't see their video for Christian Woman on MTV (Unless you live in Euorpe),
you CAN catch them live when they hit a town near you! And not to fear if your
city was one of the shows they missed, or had to reschedule, because, "We are
going to try and finish up the tour on the Eastern seaboard. We have a good fan
base up in Atlanta, Georgia, and we want to go back to Florida where there is
good radio support." So, grab "Bloody Kisses" if you don't already have it,
see 'em live, and "Don't trust the government!"

It saddens me to inform you of this, but Black Mark products will no longer be
carried by Cargo Records here in the States. (Though I am informed that Cargo
in Canada may still handle a few items.) Fortunately, Stage Three is picking up
the rights to Black Mark material, though it may take a few months to set
everything up. More info as it becomes available.

Welp, here's some more release dates, these are for artists on the Roadrunner
label:

BUZZOVEN "Sore" - July 12
ST. VITUS "V" (re-release) - July 12
MADBALL "Set it Off" - July 26
MACHINE HEAD "Burn my Eyes" - August 9
OBITUARY "World Demise" - September 6
FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY "Millenium" - late September
INTERMIX To Be Announced - late September

THIS JUST IN: Violet Arcana has just been signed to Zoth Ommog records over in
Germany! No word yet on when Cleopatra (the label that has been carrying the
Zoth Ommog line for quite some time now) will release this over in the States,
but we'll keep you informed.

Well, up in the video realm, MTV has shown some videos lately that are pretty
cool. Of course, Headbanger's Ball is the only place you'll see these, but at
least the bands get some coverage. Anyway, Morbid Angel has yet another video,
for "God of Emptiness," which I must say is quite good, though they seem to
have this fascination for filming in churches. Other good vid's are Biohazard's
"Tales From the Hardside," (These guys are now signed to Warner Brothers, and
this new song is harder than ever! Major label deals haven't changed these
guys at all!) "Closer" by Nine Inch Nails, (notice how many video clips are
"missing?" I'm actually surprised they played this one at all!) and "Prison
Sex" by Tool. Tool, by the way, has the coolest clay animation figures I've
ever seen. (If they indeed use clay animation.)

For all you KISS Fans, they have a sort of "tribute" album called "KISS my ass"
where they feature classic KISS cuts and there is even a home video compilation
in the works which will feature rare performances from their many concerts.
They are indeed in the studio as we speak recording a follow up album to their
last successful effort "Revenge."

Coming soon from Machinery Records is "French/Belgium Industries," a
compilation with seven French and six Belgian bands. This compilation is an
introduction to the young energy and raw electronic industrial scene of both
countries. This is also the start of a series of country based compilations
which is planned to feature Espana, Italia, The Balkan Mafia and the USA. The
bands which are to be featured are as follows: From France we have Phase
Pattern, K...Bereit, De Vermis Mysteriis, Fight in Unity, Brain Leisure, and
A Thousand Societies. From Belgium it's Collapse, Imminent Starvation, Fuzz
Box Machine, !AiBoFoRcEn, Lescure 13, and Suicide Commando.

Bad luck has hit Snog twice now! For the second time an airfreight parcel from
Australia to Berlin has been received completely crushed. The enclosed new
master DAT's which were to be their upcoming album were smashed yet again! And
people in the US complain about their mail being slow? Hopefully the third
time's the charm, eh? If all goes well, their third DAT should arrive in the
Machinery office soon.

The best of Dance or Die is climbing higher and higher in the Alternative Press
dance charts. As of this writing it was at #16, and it has inspired Ango &
Wagner to work on a new album. They are currently in Berlin and have been
staying completely isolated while they finish it. One title of a finished track
has leaked out, however, this track being "Time Zero."

Recently signed to Godhead Recordings is an underground Stockholm death metal
band known as Expulsion. A very famous group, they were one of the first death
metal acts back in '88 along with Nihilist, Grave, Dismember, Grotesque, and
Treblinka. Their first release on Godhead Records is due out in early September
of 1994, and features 10 songs written in different periods of the band's
history. The track "At The Madness End" will also feature Johan Edlun from
Tiamat on vocals. Two of the members of Expulsion, Stefan and Anders, were once
members of Tiamat.

Also due out in September 94 on Godhead Records is the first Acrimony full
length CD called "Hymn to the Stone." They formed in 1991 and have released one
demo and a 7" single on Shiver records in 1993. Influences such as Hawkwind,
Thin Lizzy, Saint Vitus, Black Sabbath, Kyuss, Cathedral and 70's rock/doom
metal have combined with the band's original visions to create a truly unique
sound. In August they tour with Swedish doomsters Count Raven and a European
tour is scheduled for October 94.

The guys in Bigod 20 are nearly done with their full length CD "Supercute" for
Sire Records. They have waited nearly two years to put this one out, and they
are also working on a video which should probably be underway as we speak. Also
due out on Sire records is a CD from legendary Armageddon Dildos, and that one
is due out in August.

Claus Larsen of Leaether Strip is very busy, and we thought that the current
release of "Underneath the Laughter" (Cleopatra, reviewed this issue) was his
newest, but actually this thing was out for almost a year on Zoth Ommog WAY
before Cleopatra released it. Anyway, Claus' new project is called "Serenade
for the Dead," and is a totally instrumental project which, according to
Getting Away With Murder in the United States fanzine, is "taking electronic
music to classical heights." Claus is also working on a new Strip CD called
"Invite the Perverted" and working on some new tracks for the band Klute.

Morbid Angel is going out on the road soon with Black Sabbath and Motorhead,
and has recruited guitarist Richard Brunelle (who was axed from the group over
a year ago due to "musical differences") for the group's US dates. Also in a
related note, vocalist/bassist David Vincent is working on a side project (and
what band isn't these days!) which will be similar to the music portrayed by
Type O Negative.

No word yet on Six Feet Under, the side project of Obituary guitarist Allen
West and Cannibal Corpse vocalist Chris Barnes, though it is noted that Metal
Blade Records has taken a strong liking to the recent three song demo sent in
by the duo. More info as it becomes available.

NEWS FLASH! Running Wild has a new CD out, entitled "Black Lightning." No word
from the overseas fan club, but word should be in before the next issue goes to
press.

Deicide are currently working on their third effort for Roadrunner, and
according to Glenn Benton, bassist/vocalist for the group, it will feature a
style that is "simpler and catchier" than their last release "Legion." It will
be produced by Scott Burns and recorded at Tampa's Morrisound Studio.

Up for review in the next issue of Vibrations of Doom magazine are a few
released from fellow deathsters Desultory and Epidemic. Desultory's newest
release is called "Bitterness," and is a tad different from their last effort,
however, Epidemic's "Exit Paradise" is a killer album, featuring such crushing
tunes as "Void," "Deaden," "To Escape the Void," and "Section 13."

Metal Blade is also re-releasing LOTS of classic titles on CD. Scheduled for
rerelease are ALL 9 Metal Massacre albums and the following:

My favorite doom/deathsters from Sweden, Tiamat, have split up. It seems that
the reason for the split was over differences in opinion over a 4 song demo
which was an instrumental composition. Members Johan Edlund (vocalist and
guitarist) and Jonny Hagel (bassist) will retain the Tiamat logo and are
recruiting new members to pursue a direction which they describe as a cross
between their last album "Clouds" and Pink Floyd.

Testament has gone through some surprising changes as of late! They have gotten
rid of six stringer Glen Alvelais (who they picked up from Forbidden to replace
Alex Skolnick) and replaced him with none other than Disincarnate legend James
Murphy! They are completing work (may already be done by the time this hits)
on their 6th album tenatively titled "Low," and features a much heavier and
aggressive sound than that found on their last release "The Ritual." Surprising
enough also is the fact that producers (yes, two of them!) are Garth
Richardson (Rage Against the Machine) and Bill Kennedy (Nine Inch Nails!) This
should prove to be an interesting venture, to say the least!

So, what has happened to Leif Edling of Candlemass? While the band Candlemass
has been relatively quiet these days, Leif has a side project called Abstrakt
Algebra. He is going to record a debut album which will be self financed and
finished sometime this spring. Some tracks that will appear are "Stigmata,"
"Vanishing Man," "Shadowplay," and "Nameless."

VIOLET ARCANA "IN THE SCENE OF THE MIND"
We mentioned G.A.W.M.U.S, a fan based information service dedicated to the
Music Research/Zoth Ommog bands. Badically they inform us about bands and cover
merchandise info. They even have giveaways! For more information, write to them
at Ric Laciak, G.W.A.M.U.S., P.O. Box 92575, Milwaukee, WI 53202, USA. Or
contact them on the Internet at laciakr@aol.com.

Welp, as this issue draws to a close, I want to thank everyone who helped out
in getting the Internet distribution. This damn 'zine is nearly 65k long,
almost double the size of last issue! Hopefully I'll be able to mail it out
normally, if you want a copy, just send me E-mail requesting a copy and I'll
E-mail it to you! The E-mail address is ax487@freenet.hsc.colorado.edu. Make
Sure that you type the E-mail address correctly, or it won't get to me!

Also, we might start doing concert reviews if we get enough people to send
me the reviews. I personally don't do concert reviews anymore, simply because I
have no way to get to the shows unless they come to my area. Which hardly ever
happens. Anyway, that's it for now, since I've run out of room I'll have to
save the info on how to get a freenet account for next issue! Thanks for being
with us for a whole year, and we look forward to many more! The next issue is
due out between mid September and late October. Until then...